September 11, 2023
Daily Devotion:
"Enough"
1 Samuel 15:15-19
New International Version
15 Saul answered, “The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord your God, but we totally destroyed the
rest.” 16 “Enough!” Samuel said to Saul. “Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” “Tell me,” Saul replied. 17 Samuel said, “Although you were once small in your own eyes, did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel? The Lord anointed you king over Israel. 18 And he sent you on a mission, saying, ‘Go and completely destroy those wicked people, the Amalekites; wage war against them until you have wiped them out.’ 19 Why did
you not obey the Lord? Why did you pounce on the plunder and do evil in the eyes of the Lord?”
Samuel has reached the end of his rope. The people elected Saul king, but he's no longer qualified. What are they to do? Israel is surrounded by enemies, and they need someone to carry the
sceptre. But who? Samuel didn't know and couldn't imagine. The people didn't know and had no suggestions. No one knew . . . except God. What Samuel didn't realize—what we often don't realize—is that behind the scenes, before He ever flung the stars into space, God had today in mind. He had this very week in
mind. In fact, He had you in mind. And He knew exactly what He was going to do. God is never at a loss to know what He's going to do in our situations. He knows perfectly well what is best for us. Our problem is, we don't know. And we say to Him, "Lord, if You just tell me, then I'll be in great shape. Just reveal it to me. Explain your plan to me, and I'll count on you." But that's not faith. Faith is counting on Him when we do not know what tomorrow holds. When a man or a woman of God fails, nothing of God fails. When a man or woman of God changes, nothing of God changes. When someone dies, nothing of God dies. When our lives are altered by the unexpected, nothing of God is altered
or unexpected. It was the prophet Isaiah who wrote: "Before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear" (Isaiah 65:24)."Before you even utter a word," God promises, "I'm
involved in answering. In fact, while you're speaking, I'm involved in bringing to pass the very thing I have planned from the get-go.".God knows exactly what He's going to do, and nothing can restrain His bringing it to pass.
